Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
504,181 games: White 46.3% / Draw 4.8% / Black 48.9%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 146,666147K | ||
| Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Main Line | 94,33494K | |
| 75,66976K | ||
| 74,73075K | ||
| 56,52557K | ||
| 14,26014K | ||
| 13,42513K | ||
| 6,5926,592 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 27, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.22 The position is about equal
Best play: 7. Be3 a6 8. Bb3 Na5 9. f4 Qc7 10. f5 Nxb3 11. cxb3 b5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 54% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up and 50% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 38K | |
| 1400–1799 | 227K | |
| 1800–2199 | 281K | |
| 2200 and up | 77K | |
| Masters, over the board | 4,209 |
Master games
- Giri, A. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Aronian, L. – Grischuk, A.
- Abdusattorov, N. – Rapport, R.
- Fischer, R. J. – Spassky, B. V.
- Fischer, R. J. – Larsen, B.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation (ECO B88, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Sicilian Defense: Open, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Bc4 e6 (6 moves).
In 504,181 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.3%, Black 48.9% and 4.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. O-O, in 29% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Main Line and Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Fischer Variation. In all, 3 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation
7. Bb3 scores best for White: 53.8%, with White winning 51.2% and Black 43.6% of 75K games. The most played, 7. O-O, scores 48.2% in 147K games, and 7. Nxc6 scores lowest: 43.4%. Stockfish's first choice is 7. Be3.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.016% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.023% (its peak: 0.026% in 2019).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.023% | 8,190 |
| 2017 | 0.025% | 13,723 |
| 2018 | 0.025% | 19,947 |
| 2019 | 0.026% | 31,939 |
| 2020 | 0.025% | 72,177 |
| 2021 | 0.022% | 85,350 |
| 2022 | 0.018% | 69,341 |
| 2023 | 0.017% | 64,361 |
| 2024 | 0.016% | 58,497 |
| 2025 | 0.016% | 54,767 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.016% | 17,471 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (2)
Transpositions
All 3 named lines that continue from here
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation (B88)”. Lichess data as of 27 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-sozin-attack-leonhardt-variation